The Right Bed?. Wendy Etherington

determined to leave Sam and her wedding plans behind. She’d even called the airline to buy a ticket back to Boston on the first flight out in the morning.

      Did anyone ever find a lasting love? Or was it all just an illusion, as shiny and clear as glass until something came along to shatter it? Did people stay in relationships only because they were too stubborn to admit defeat?

      Caley knew her parents loved each other. They’d been together almost thirty years. And Jake’s parents often acted like newlyweds. So why was it so hard for her to believe in love?

      She walked to the bathroom and closed the door behind her, then turned on the shower, ignoring the urge to crawl into bed with Jake. It would be so easy to find comfort in his arms. She felt safe with him. But were her feelings real or were they just part of a fantasy that she was only now having the chance to live out?

      There was no doubt in her mind that everything between them had changed. He’d become a part of her life and not a part she could easily excise. In truth, she couldn’t imagine living without him. Yet, she couldn’t quite figure out how she could live with him.

      How would it work? Would they call it an affair? A relationship? An arrangement? Friends with benefits, she mused. That’s what they had now, wasn’t it? But for them to continue, they’d have to give it a name.

      A soft knock sounded on the bathroom door before it slowly opened. Jake stepped inside, his naked body beautiful in even the harsh fluorescent light. He slipped his arms around her waist and kissed her forehead.

      “Is everything all right?”

      “I just needed to take a shower. I smell like smoke.”

      “How’s Emma?”

      “Still drunk, still furious with Sam and ready to go back to Boston in the morning.”

      Jake took her hand and pulled her along to the shower stall, then opened the glass door. He stepped inside, the water hitting his naked body and sluicing over his skin. Caley followed him, stepping right into his embrace.

      His fingers furrowed through her hair and he kissed her, his tongue slipping between her lips to taste her mouth. The moment their bodies touched, every doubt and insecurity seemed to vanish. Why was it so easy to believe in love when they were making love and so hard to understand it when they were apart?

      Jake drew back and stared down into her eyes, then reached out to touch her breast. He cupped her warm flesh gently, running his thumb over her nipple until it became a stiff peak. Then he smoothed his hand along her hip, his fingers soft and teasing.

      Caley reached out and brushed her fingers against his hard shaft. It had taken only a moment for him to become aroused and she found her power over him satisfying. Jake moaned softly as she wrapped her fingers around his heat.

      Already, his body was so familiar to her. She knew how he’d react to her touch, the way his breath would catch in his throat, the sound of his voice whispering her name, the feel of his body tensing just before he reached his release.

      Jake grabbed her waist and slowly backed her up against the tile wall of the shower. He kissed the curve of her neck and then moved lower, teasing at her nipple with his tongue. “Tell me what you want,” he murmured as he gently caressed her nipple.

      “You,” she said. “Inside me.”

      He dropped his hand to the soft curve of her backside and gently squeezed. “Tell me how.”

      “First, you have to kiss me in just the right way.”

      Jake gave it his best effort, kissing her gently at first and then with growing urgency, dragging his tongue along the crease of her mouth until she surrendered completely. Her knees went soft and she felt herself melt in his arms, the warm water rushing over them both.

      “That’s a start,” she murmured.

      Jake slowly trailed kisses over her shoulder and down her arm. When he knelt in front of her, Caley raked her fingers through his wet hair, pulling him away when his tongue tickled.

      He was so beautiful, so incredibly sexy. She couldn’t imagine ever feeling this attracted to another man. There seemed to be electricity that crackled between them every time they were together. Just one touch of his fingers to her bare skin was all it took for the attraction to overwhelm them both.

      Jake’s lips trailed lower, until he found the dampness between her legs. She was already aroused and the moment he touched her there, her body jerked in response. “I love that I can touch you like this,” he murmured. “That there’s nothing left to stop us.” He gently parted her legs, tasting her until she writhed against him.

      “Oh,” she breathed. “Oh, right there.”

      As he brought her closer and closer to her release, Caley murmured his name urgently, her fingers twisted tightly in his hair. Jake followed her cues, dragging her back from the edge when she got too close. It wasn’t enough. She didn’t want to experience this pleasure by herself.

      She drew him back to his feet, tugging gently on his hair until he stood in front of her. Jake knew what she wanted without her even needing to tell him. He stepped back and gave her a crooked smile. “I have to go get a condom.”

      Caley grabbed his hand and shook her head. “It’s all right,” she said. “You don’t have to worry.”

      “Are you sure?”

      Caley nodded. She’d been on the pill for years and it had always seemed like such a practical thing. But now, it was liberating. She trusted Jake and he trusted her. She wanted to experience him without any barriers between them. And if they had this one night together, this chance to possess each other completely, then it would be enough. Caley didn’t care what came later as long as this came now.

      She turned off the shower, then pulled him along to the bed, their bodies dripping water on the carpet. She lay back on the mattress and Jake braced himself above her. Gently, she guided him to her entrance and he closed his eyes the moment they touched.

      Slowly, exquisitely, he pushed inside of her, filling her inch by inch until he was buried deep. Caley felt the muscles in his body tense, but he didn’t give in. Instead, he began to move.

      She closed her eyes and focused on the sensations that washed over her body. She was already so close, but this seemed to take her to a higher level, the need growing more intense with each stroke. This was paradise, she thought. There was nothing more perfect. Every year that had passed since that night of her eighteenth birthday had led them to this moment.

      “I want you,” he murmured. “Come for me.”

      He increased his pace and Caley felt herself dancing on the edge. And when her release came, it came so fast that it caught her by surprise. She cried out and the pleasure shook her body, stealing her ability to think.

      It was enough to send him over the edge and Jake surrendered a moment later. It was simple, uncomplicated and pure, the two of them searching for release and finding it with each other.

      He was like an addiction, a craving that she could only satisfy for a short time. Though she felt sated now, Caley knew she’d want more, each time searching for that certainty, that knowledge that this was something that might last. He rolled over, gathering her in his arms and nuzzling into the curve of her neck. “Can we stay here forever?” he murmured.

      “I think the maid will probably discover us when she comes to make the bed and do the vacuuming,” Caley joked.

      Jake pushed up on his elbow. “You’re supposed to say yes,” he teased. “Or I’ll feel as if you weren’t well satisfied.”

      “I was,” she said.

      They lay together, wrapped in each other’s arms, for a long time. Caley listened to his breathing. He wasn’t asleep and she wondered what he was thinking. But she was afraid to ask. They’d so carefully avoided the subject of the future, but it was coming at them quickly.

      “What